Middle East economic outlook hinges on vaccinations
Five countries to watch: Tunisia, Iran, Iraq, Egypt and Oman.
The headline from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) World Economic Outlook update this week is that the keystone of any global economic recovery is vaccination rate for the COVID-19 virus — and the prospect is very much divided between advanced and emerging economies.
No surprise, then, that the Middle East also is split, with Israel and most Gulf states faring better than others still struggling with COVID-19 and its rising Delta variant. Being in the lead, of course, does not mean smooth sailing; even in the United States, cases are up. Low vaccination rates in much of the Middle East, however, are amplifying existing governance and economic challenges and slowing otherwise positive economic trends.
Middle East lags global recovery
The IMF is projecting world economic growth of 6% this year and 4.9% in 2022, after a downturn of 3.2% in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
